Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah gave political rivals a free hit on Tuesday when he misspoke at a press conference in Karnataka saying if ever there was a competition for corruption, the Yeddyurappa government would win the first prize.

“A retired Supreme Court judge recently said that if we hold a competition for the most corrupt government in the country, then Yeddyurappa government shall be given the No. 1 award,” Shah rattled off.

Shah quickly corrected himself when BJP MP Prahlad Joshi seated next to him audibly whispered “Siddaramaiah”, the name of the incumbent chief minister belonging to the Congress party.

BS Yeddyurappa, the party’s chief ministerial candidate, who according to news reports looked stunned by the faux pas was reported to have told reporters Shah’s statement was ‘a slip of tongue’. “Siddaramaiah is stupid. Let him count the number of times he has done the gaffe of abusing his own government,” Yeddyurappa was reported to have said.

Not willing to squander a juicy free hit, Congress leaders and the party’s IT cell had a field day with Shah’s comment.